Putting the pieces back together

By Dug Begley, Houston Chronicle

Updated 11:09 pm, Friday, April 19, 2013

Photo: Erich Schlegel / Getty Images

Image 1of/2

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 2

The remains of an apartment complex show the level of devastation next to the fertilizer plant that exploded Wednesday night. Buildings were damaged for blocks in every direction. It won't be easy to rebuild, longtime West residents said, and the tragedy of the explosion will linger. less

The remains of an apartment complex show the level of devastation next to the fertilizer plant that exploded Wednesday night. Buildings were damaged for blocks in every direction. It won't be easy to rebuild, ... more

Photo: Erich Schlegel / Getty Images

Image 2 of 2

Flags are flown at half-staff Friday after the fertilizer plant explosion two days before.

Flags are flown at half-staff Friday after the fertilizer plant explosion two days before.

Photo: Edward A. Ornelas / San Antonio Express-News

Putting the pieces back together

1 / 2

Back to Gallery

WEST — Most of the windows and doors devastated by the big blast are sealed with plywood.

By Friday, if only to suppress the grief of losing friends and neighbors, many here focused their attention on rebuilding this community.

Friends checked on each other, asking if they needed any help. On Oak Street, the city's core commercial corridor, shopkeepers swept up broken glass along the sidewalk.

The people of this tight-knit community won't put up with chaos and disorder for long.

“This is a nice town,” said Jerome Lednicky, chairman of a local bank. “People clean up the downtown. You don't see lawns not mowed.”

It won't be easy to rebuild, longtime residents said, and the tragedy of the explosion will linger. Many said they were looking for a return to normal, even though a lot of familiar places are gone.

The coming days, especially after people are allowed back into their homes, will be about salvage and assessment.

Insurance company mobile claims stations — RVs or travel trailers with a logo on the side — began popping up around town Thursday. Repair and utility crews waited for access to the area closest to the blast, closed by authorities since Wednesday.

After being allowed inside the hardest-hit area briefly, Silva said houses within three blocks of the facility were heavily damaged. Some of those still standing will likely have to be stripped practically to their frames, he said.

“You'll see chimneys are laid over because roofs are caving in,” Silva said.

A graduate of West High School, Silva said he has no doubt the city can rebuild.

“There is so much family here,” he said. “At some point some grandkid married some other grandkid.”

Newcomers are welcomed and assimilated into the West way of life.

When Doug Thompson moved to town, he said, neighbors greeted his family as they unloaded furniture from a truck.

“They were coming out of their homes to say, 'Can we help?'” he said.

Now former residents such as Thompson, whose daughter still lives in West, and people who have never set foot in the city are sending their support.

Indeed, the town is bulging with donated goods. A community center drop-off spot was overwhelmed, so goods were moved to the neighboring fairground. By late Friday morning, officials were scrambling to find another spot.

A local motel acted as a distribution point and also housed evacuees blown out of their homes.